This will be the fourth season in which I will attempt to narrow down some of the top rookies for the upcoming season but this year I'm only going to focus on the Western Conference.

Dobber has his top 50 list and Ben Gehrels looks at his Calder candidates in the 2022-23 Guide.

Most years, I get some right, find a few gems off the radar and whiff on a player or two who came out of nowhere. I tend to focus on opportunity, ice time and where each player might slot in the lineup.

*Andrei Kuzmenko is not eligible as a rookie as he turned 26 in February of 2022 and the cutoff is September 2022 for 26-year-olds.

Honorable Mentions

Scott Perunovich – St. Louis Blues – D –

Perunovich was on a few people's lists last season but only ended up with six points in 19 NHL games and an impressive 22 points in 17 AHL games as he battled injuries for over half the season. He is still blocked by Torey Krug and Nick Leddy on the left side in St. Louis, but the injury to Marco Scandella (six months) has opened up a possible slot as the 6th or 7th defender on opening night. Krug hasn't played more than 64 games in any of the past four seasons, so there could be an opportunity for Perunovich to run the first unit power play for 15-20 games at some point. I just don't think it is enough to get him past 25-30 points this season.

Martin Kaut – Colorado Avalanche – RW

Kaut is now 23 years of age after being a first-round draft pick of Colorado back in 2018. He will require waivers to be sent down to the AHL this year, so rather than lose him there is a good chance the Avalanche keep him up and give him a shot this season. He has played parts of the past three seasons in Colorado with six games last year, five the year before and nine the year before that. He had 19 goals and 12 assists in 46 AHL games last year, so there is some offense there. He could be capable of 14-18 goals and 14-18 assists.

Pavol Regenda – Anaheim Ducks –  LW –

Every list needs a player where most people ask who the hell is this guy. Here is that player.  Regenda is an undrafted 22-year-old Slovakian who had a breakout season in the Slovakian top league last year with 15 goals and 24 assists in 43 games. He's a big winger at 6-4, 212 lbs who skates very well and has a chance to win a top-six role with the Ducks this year. He could be a 12-15 goal and 30-35 point player.

Some of the above will or are capable of sliding into the top ten below, but without further ado here is my top ten for the West.

#10 – Stuart Skinner – Edmonton Oilers – G –

Skinner will be the backup in Edmonton behind Jack Campbell. Campbell's career-high for games played in a season is 49, so it is a good guess that Skinner will play 25-35 games this season. On a strong Oilers team, he should win 15-25 games this season.

#9 – Lukas Reichel – Chicago Blackhawks – LW –

Reichel is a boom or bust pick here as he will need to play in the top-six to stay with the Blackhawks, but they might give an opportunity with Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews or Max Domi. Reichel has some skill and did play 11 games last season with Chicago with one point but had 57 points in 56 AHL games. He could put up 14-18 goals and 20-25 assists.

#8 – Shane Wright – Seattle Kraken – C –

I don't usually like to pick 18-year-olds as my rookie favorites (or I like to think I'm learning my lesson) but having watched a few pre-season games of Wright and the way that the Kraken are deploying him early gives me optimism for his success this year. Having said that, the Kraken have given out no-trade clauses like candy and moving one of Alex Wennberg or Yanni Gourde won't be as easy a move to make room for Wright this year or next as one would like. Wright could get 13-17 goals and 22-27 assists if everything works out.

#7 – Thomas Bordeleau – San Jose Sharks – LW –

Bordeleau had an impressive eight games at the end of last season in San Jose where he had five assists. This was after he turned pro after leaving college and the University of Michigan after his second season there. He's a solid setup man who could do well on the power play with the Sharks. He could produce 12-15 goals and 25-30 assists next year.

#6 – Marco Rossi – Minnesota Wild – C/LW –

Rossi is a player that Minnesota fans have been excited to get a look at for a few years. He missed a lot of time with some health issues related to Covid during the 2020-21 season, so understandably the Wild had him get some well-needed games last year in the AHL. He played 63 games there and had 18 goals and 35 assists to go along with two games in the NHL. There are rumors that he is destined to start as the fourth-line center, rather than play on the second line as a winger. If those turn out to be the case it would reduce his projected point totals from 45-50 to 30 to 35.

#5 – William Eklund – San Jose Sharks – LW –

Eklund played nine games with the Sharks at the beginning of last season before being sent back to the SHL where he struggled with just one goal and 13 assists in 29 games. He has made the 27-man roster that the Sharks are taking to play in Europe for a series of regular season games later this week. He has an opportunity to play in the top-six on this team. He could be capable of 35-45 points this season if that is the case. I'm hoping he has a similar opportunity that was extended to Jonathan Dahlen in the first half of last season.

#4 – Cole Perfetti – Winnipeg Jets – RW –

I was a year early on Perfetti last season as he only ended up playing 18 games with the Jets last year and 17 games in the AHL as he battled injuries. This year he seems poised to secure a spot on the second line of the Jets and if that is the case, he could see 14-18 goals and 25-30 assists this year.

#3 – Mason McTavish – Anaheim Ducks – C/LW –

McTavish played in Anaheim's pre-season game on Sunday night after missing all of the pre-season nursing an injury. He had an excellent tournament at the World Juniors as the leading scorer and won a gold medal. If the Ducks elect to play him on the wing, he might have a chance to play in the top-six, but if they want him to start at center it is more than likely on the third or fourth line. For fantasy results, we want him on the wing and if that happens he is capable of 18-23 goals and 20-25 assists.

#2 – Logan Thompson – Vegas Golden Knights – G –

As a rookie, Thompson has one of the most coveted positions on this list. He will be sharing the crease of a team which is capable of winning 45-50 games, with Adin Hill. There is a chance that Thompson could emerge as the starter of the two and end up playing 45-50 games and winning 30-35 games.

#1 – Matty Beniers – Seattle Kraken – C

I believe Beniers is a step above the other players on this list and even though he only played 10 games last season (with nine points), I think he's the real deal and could get 20-25 goals and 35-40 assists next year. The Kraken should be a better offensive team with the additions of Oliver Bjorkstrand and Andre Burakovsky and Beniers should benefit.

As I've learned each of the prior three years in doing a top rookie list, there is always a player or two that comes out of seemingly nowhere. A few candidates for that are Spencer Martin, Connor Ingram, Cole Guttman, Juuso Parssinen and Danil Gushchin.

Thanks for reading and if you have any questions or players you'd like me to look at please message or follow me on Twitter @gampbler15.